A few days ago we brought you some comments from Star Wars: Episode VIII director Rian Johnson, where he revealed that the middle-chapter of the Sequel Trilogy will pick up straight after the final shot of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, as well as touching upon Rey’s journey and her training under Luke Skywalker.
Well, USA Today has now posted an interview with the filmmaker, during which he offered a few more tidbits on December’s hugely-anticipated sequel.
“I want it to be a blast and to be funny and to be a ride the way The Force Awakens and the original Star Wars movies were,” said Johnson. “I wanted to know more about each of them, and that doesn’t just mean information or backstory,” Johnson says. “Figure out what’s the most difficult thing each of them could be challenged with now — let’s throw that at them and dig into what really makes them tick by seeing how they handle that.”
Johnson went on to state that the question of “What’s going on with Luke Skywalker?” is a central question to Episode VIII: “I’m approaching it with a take that I hope feels honest and real and is going to be interesting to folks and make sense.”
SEE ALSO: Adam Driver talks Star Wars: Episode VIII and exploring Kylo Ren’s humanity
As you’d expect from the final shots of The Force Awakens, Episode VIII will also have a big focus on Rey’s relationship with Luke, with Johnson adding that “both not knowing what’s going to happen and also having a lot of expectations in her head about how this is going to go. It very much feels like what we all go through in adolescence, the dawning of this new chapter of our lives.”
Johnson also revealed that the movie already has a title, and has done since he first began working on the movie, although he’s certainly not letting it slip: “It was in the very first draft I wrote. I’ll just blurt it out right now! All in good time, my friend.”
Star Wars: Episode VIII is set for release on December 15th 2017 and sees returning cast members Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Carrie Fisher (Leia Organa), Adam Driver (Kylo Ren), Daisy Ridley (Rey), John Boyega (Finn), Oscar Isaac (Poe Dameron), Lupita Nyong’o (Maz Kanata), Domhnall Gleeson (General Hux), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Gwendoline Christie (Captain Phasma), Billie Lourd (Lieutenant Connix), Andy Serkis (Supreme Leader Snoke), Peter Mayhew and Joonas Suotamo (Chewbacca), Tim Rose (Admiral Ackbar), Mike Quinn (Nien Nunb), Simon Pegg (Unkar Plutt), and Warwick Davis joined by new additions Benicio Del Toro (Guardians of the Galaxy), Laura Dern (Jurassic Park), Kelly Marie Tran (Ladies Like Us) and Jimmy Vee (Pan) as R2-D2.
Originally published January 14, 2017. Updated April 16, 2018.
